Favorite
by Hatoralo
Summary: Lori loves her family, she is a Jerk, but she has a heart of gold and that gold will when in doubt be the more prominent aspect. She always tries to distribute her love evenly but what if she loves one of her family members more than the others? What can a sister do when the love for one becomes stronger than the love for all of them? (Cover by patanu102 with permission from him)
1. Chapter 1

**Here we have a two-shot about how a sister loves another sister.**  
 **I wanted to make this a one-shot first but I think it will work better as a two-shot, better two short-chapters than one that is to long.**

 **Hope you enjoy it!**

 **P.S.: And don't worry about the projects I am working on with MamaAniki, they are not forgotten and will be updated.  
**

* * *

 **Favorite**

by

 **Ralte or Hatoralo  
**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Feelings can't be hidden (Be careful that you post on social media)**

* * *

It was a day like most days in the House of the Louds.  
Lori could already hear the usual sound of chaos as she woke up and rose up from her bed.

"Luan, have you seen my drumstick?"

"No, I didn't see it STICK around." A short laughter. "Get it?"

Followed by a groan.

"No, you can't use my old jersey as an alchemic ingredient, Lucy."

"Sigh. But it would be perfect ingredient to make a potion to give somebody an incredible amount of Stamina."

"Really?"

"Either that or the taste of your dry sweat will kill the first person who drinks that potion."

"I am a winner! Drinking my sweat will bring them luck!"

"I think it would most likely lead them to catching a deadly disease," intruded the voice of Lola into the conversation between Lucy and Lynn. "If you think you can produce anything healthy out of Lynn's clothing, you are an idiot."

"I will not decry that alchemy was the predecessor of modern chemistry and would give those archaic practices the credit they deserves," Lisa's voice stepped in. "But to think it could actually increase the constancy of anyone is bovine."

Yep, only the usual arguments. Nothing to worry about so far. Lori could still lay in her bed for a while longer and think of quieter places with less siblings.

"Luan, what did you do with my video games?!"

Lori opened her eyes. That was Lincoln, and he sounded angry, very angry.

"I just thought the covers on them got old, so I replaced them."

"Those "covers," as you call them, just show different comedians parodying the video games! Badly, I might add!"

"Hey, I researched the games… Okay, I only looked at the original covers and then looked up a summary of each one on Wikipedia, but I think that was enough."

"I don't remember Mario doing magic tricks with Luigi and white tigers!" Lincoln's voice snarled in anger.

"They seem to be close, so why not make them look a little like Siegfried and Roy?" asked Luan's voice innocently.

"They are brothers!"

Following that was a silence, quiet enough to hear a thread falling to the ground.

"Seems to me they became "Brothers in Arms" with EXTREME amount of using their arms to use on the magic wands." A short laugh. "Get-"

The sound of a fist colliding with a face was heard.  
Lori got up and out of her bed with an annoyed sigh. She knew the difference between a harmless scuffle and a serious fight, and this sounded more than serious.

Lincoln was far from the most punch-happy in the house, but he could be capable of resorting to physical violence when pushed too far, and Luan managed to push him just far enough. Lori ran out of her room, watching her brother and the comedienne brawling in a ball of violent action like two angry hamsters fighting for dominance. The others were just looking at the fight, not sure what to do about it.

Unfazed by her siblings' behavior, she put her arms into the chaotic mess of limbs and activity and pulled her two siblings out of it. She held them in the air by their ankles like the spoils of a good hunt.

"So, I literally heard the argument from my bed," Lori started to use her authoritative voice. "Can you replace the covers on his cartridges with the originals ones, Luan?"

Luan nodded in an anxious manner. "Sure thing, no problem. It's just that I never intended to damage the covers permanently."

"Good, did you hear that, Lincoln?"

"Yes," was Lincoln's exhausted answer, since the fight and his rage had taken his toll on him. "I heard that."

"Luan, are you sorry for what you did?" asked Lori in a stern tone. "You may not understand it, but covers are literally important for video game enthusiasts."

"Sorry for replacing your covers, Lincoln," Luan grumbled in a partly-angry, partly-guilty sounding tone.

Lori looked over to Lincoln. "And what do you have to say to Luan, Lincoln?"

"I am also sorry for punching you, Luan," Lincoln apologized to Luan, knowing the way he attacked her was over the line.

"Good for you two, now remove the parody covers from his cartridges and put the old covers back on, Luan."

She put the two down on the ground and sent them on their way. Making sure they wouldn't start another fight while looking around, she noticed how the others dispersed after Lori had ended the conflict, continuing their daily routines and Lori wanted to do the same. She was turning around to return to her room to get dressed as she heard the start of yet ANOTHER fight.

"You stepped on my toes!"  
That was Lana's voice.

"Then be more careful where you place your Bigfoot-esque feet, you Neanderthal!"  
Lola's voice.

From action came a reaction, and the natural logic for the two was to start an argument the way they more often than not used to discuss whatever difficulties they had with one another in their relationship.  
In other words: They started a brawl.

Lori, hoping the brawl would wind down, sighed as the intensity of the fight only increased. She shrugged and turned around, walking into the room of the identical twins.

Her annoyed expression met another ball of violence made of two bodies and wildly flailing extremities, arms punching and legs kicking. She put two of her fingers at the corners of her mouth and whistled loudly, which got the sisters to stop their battle.

"Listen to me, Twin-Twerps," commanded the oldest. "Lola: Be careful where you walk, and when you step on somebody's toes, you apologize and don't insult their feet size, understood?"

"Yes, Lori," Lola replied in a servile yet also slightly resistant tone.

Lori's tone became noticeably softer as she addressed the plumber girl. She even cracked a smile. "And as for you, Miss little plumber, don't be so eager as to start a fight with your sister, even when she is insulting you... Actually, this literally goes for both of you. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Lori," the two said in unison but then Lola raised an eyebrow and asked: "Why did you sound friendlier to Lana?"

Lori looked directly at Lola, her expression being one of puzzlement. "What do you mean?"

"You talked to Lana in a nicer tone than you did to me right now," was Lola's angry answer. "That is not fair!"

"Well, you started it, Lola. You stepped on my toes."

Lola wanted to say something in response, but ultimately said nothing to Lana but she did say something to Lori. "Still, you were stricter with me."

"That was an accident," Lori said, trying to get out of the situation. "It is early and I want to get breakfast, so I am not in the mood to be angry."

"Not in the mood to be angry?" remarked Lola confused. "But-"

"No buts," Lori interrupted her before pushing the two into their room. "Now get yourselves ready for the day."

The twins didn't offer resistance and left a relieved Lori alone. But only relived to a certain point because she couldn't shake off what Lola had said to her.

 _I was nicer to Lana than to Lola? How did that ha… No, Lola just imagined things. It was an accident at worst! Yep, just a coincidence._

Lori shook the thought off her mind and tried to concentrate on the day ahead of her instead.

* * *

Later at the breakfast table, Lori gave everybody a piece of chocolate along with their usual breakfast. She hoped this would avert the attention Lola focused on her earlier this morning and get her to forget what had occurred. Some chocolate would improve her mood anytime. After she finished with distributing the chocolate, the young blond woman sat down and wanted to start her meal. After her first bite, though, Lola, once again, spoke to Lori.

"Hey, why did you give Lana two pieces of chocolate?!"

Lori froze. She looked at Lana's plate and, in fact, two pieces of the delicious brown confectionary were placed on it. Before Lana could snatch either of them into her mouth, the oldest snatched the extra piece and put it back into the plate with the other spare chocolate pieces.

"Sorry Lana, no extras for anyone," Lori explained in a soft tone. "My bad, it will not happen again."

"You better make sure of that," demanded Lola angrily. "I don't let myself be treated poorly just because you like Lana more."

To Lori's relief, nobody else at the table had noticed the dispute, being too busy with their own conversations.  
She looked over to Lana who had dismissed the situation with a shrug and continued with eating her breakfast.  
Lori also started to eat, but couldn't stop to think about what was happening.

 _I can't be nicer to Lana. I am not allowed to.  
_

* * *

 __Later that day, Lori, Lana & Lola were sitting on the living room couch with Lori watching a video on her Smartphone while sitting further away from the two and the twins watching a Blarney episode on the television.

She looked over to the twins from time to time, making sure they were okay. This was usual behavior for the golfer because as the oldest sibling, the duty of supervision landed on her shoulders most of the time.  
It was not really necessary right now, though, the parents were at home but it was part of a routine that had gone into her flesh and blood.

She was absorbed in her routine, which gave her time to think about and analyze what happened so far today. She was feeling nicer than normal since she got up from bed earlier than usual this morning and this was mirrored in the way she treated her siblings. She couldn't deny that she had also favored Lana for some reason.

She tried to figure out why she was doing that and how she could avoid it in the future. Looking at Lana, she tried to imagine a person she had to care for, protect and administer. She wasn't more important than her other siblings, but at the same time, not any less important than them. She was nothing but a statistic to Lori.  
At least, Lori tried to think that way, but just imagining any of her family as a number in a chart was impossible for her. The others liked to accuse her of being stone-cold from time to time, but that was just an exaggeration. She had equal love for all of them, she HAD to have equal love for all of them.

"Lori, can you bring me some apple juice, please?" asked Lola in her sweetest voice.

"No, get it literally yourself," Lori denied the request in a slightly exasperated tone.

"But I don't want to miss anything from the shooooow!" Complained the little princess in her sweet/annoying voice. "Pleaaaaaase?"

"No."

"I am thirsty too," mentioned Lana offhandedly. "I'll get you-"

"I'll do it," promised Lori all of the sudden while standing up only to sit down again. "No, you do it Lana. I'll do nothing for you as I'll do nothing for Lola. I will not do anything for anyone here!"

The twins starred at the oldest of them in confusion and bewilderment. Lori, thinking fast, said: "Th-this is not the Riz and I am not your butler. Go get it yourself!"

She left in an angry huff, angrier than she intended and angry with herself, not with the twins who just looked after her with even more confusion growing in their minds.

* * *

The eldest sister watched over Lana & Lola during their regular playtime at the park. Bored out of her mind, she checked on her (and her family's) VisageBook and Chipper pages.

 _Leni: Like, I really like you_ _so_ _much_ _,_ _so I want to apologize for letting cup of cocoa fall and spill_ _in_ _to_ _your insides_ _,_ _Mister Starbucks,_ wrote Leni on the Starbucks' Chipper page. _Can you forgive me?_

Starbucks: Yes, I can,

promised the Chipper Account of Starbucks. _It is fine, Miss Loud._

 _Leni: Thank you for forgiving me,_ wrote Leni in response. _I also have a question: How do you find the time to open_ _a_ _coffee franchise and become the ace pilot of the last battle star?_

Lori was not able to suppress a chuckle. Leni was priceless.  
Then somebody messaged her on VisageBook, it was Lucy, her most spooky sister.

 _Lucy: Lori, why are you only giving up-votes to Lana's stuff today?_

Lori was confused. What was her sister writing about?

 _Lori: Don't be literally absurd Lucy, I have up voted_ _your_ _posts,_ _along with everyone else's_ _.  
Lucy: Are you sure? I have your activity log on VisageBook before me and I only see stuff from Lana today._

Lori was getting nervous. She looked up her current status and realized with a gasp that she had really only up-voted stuff from Lana. Picture of a frog, a selfie with Lola, the inside of her nose, a post about the correct use of a spoke wrench and a short review of the newest Blarney Episode.

Hoping to make it less suspicious, she jumped to the posts of her other siblings and gave them likes. After finishing her work, she wrote Lucy another message.

 _Lori: You see Lucy? I up-voted everyone equally._

For some reason, and probably because she knew Lucy, she could hear the little raven-haired girl sibling say sigh as she read her answer. _Lucy: Retroactively, I have seen it and your browser history confirms it as well. Your lies are not hidden by a dark veil_ _,_ _but_ _they are_ _more visible than an open wound._

Lori rolled her eyes at the prose and decided against having a long argument with Lucy, which would lead to nothing anyway.

 _Lori: You are literally right, but please, don't tell the others about this_ _,_ _Lucy.  
Lucy: Whatever, I have to visit dark chatrooms of the macabre. See you __later_ _, Lori.  
Lori: See you later_ _,_ _too._

After this was over, Lori looked at the twins. They were building something out of sand, it looking like a combination of a queen and a crocodile. They knew how to mold sand; she had to give them that. She took a photo of the little statue of sand and posted it on VisageBook.

 _Lori: Look at this literally cute sand statue my little sister Lana made. Isn't it adorable?_

Seconds later, she got several responses to her post in quick succession, but she was not happy about a specific response.

 _Lola: Lori, what the heck? Lana_ _and_ _I made this statue together!  
Lola: Why did you write she did it alone? I almost broke a fingernail building it.  
Lola: My hands are dirty, MY HANDS ARE DIRTY!  
Lola: My Hands are dirty and you will not deny my credit on __the building of_ _that statue!  
Lola: Do you hear me?_ _!_ _  
Lola: I mean: Do you read me?_ _!_

Lori was sweating. She had to come up with something very clever to trick Lola while she'd be editing her post to add the more pink twin's name to it.

 _Lori: I didn't post this_ _._ _That was Walt, he flew onto my smartphone and pecked at it. Through random chance_ _,_ _he wrote all of this with his pecking and hit the post button._

She hoped this would buy her time for her edit, but that wasn't the case.

 _Lincoln: Do you really expect us to buy this?  
Lisa: I have to acquiesce with our sole brother, this is a highly implausible event __for us_ _to believe.  
Luan: Your story is one of the best jokes I've read on VisageBook this week!  
Clyde: Give her a chance guys, it could happen.  
Lily: Poo-Poo!  
Lisa: I acquiesce with you too_ _,_ _Lily.  
Luna: I am nobody's fool dude, and you ain't fooling nobody but yourself sis.  
Leni: Guys, I need_ _,_ _like_ _,_ _help with Starbucks. I think they could be good friends with the Royal Shakespeare Company_ _,_ _but they don't think it would work out.  
Lori: EVERYONE_ _,_ _OUT OF MY ROOM!  
Luna: This is an open chatroom on your VisageBook page, anyone can post here.  
Lori: GET OUT OR I_ _'ll_ _BLOCK YOU ALL!  
Lincoln: You still lied.  
Lori: Yes, I did_ _,_ _and I apologize for that. Lola, I will change the post to give you equal credit for the statue as well.  
Lola: You better do that or your life will become a living hell!_

Lori changed her entry quickly and looked over to Lola who was holding her own smartphone and nodding at the change, yet continued to glare angrily at the oldest.  
 _  
Lori: Better now?  
Lola: Yes, but you better not try to pull something on me like that again_ _,_ _Missy!  
Lori: Don't call me Missy you twerp or you will literally regret it.  
Lola: Do not insult me after the stunt you pulled_ _,_ _you power-hungry, Bobby-obsessed, fashion-blind Bosporus!  
Lori: Bosporus?  
Lola: I heard Lisa uttering this word.  
Lisa: 1: It is not an insult and 2: I was actually saying preposterous.  
Lincoln: Lola, the Bosporus is a narrow __river_ _between Europe and Asia.  
Lori: You don't even know the difference between a strait and an expletive. And you want to scare me? __How cute_ _.  
Lola: I am warning you Lori…  
Lori: Am I supposed to be scared? LOL! You can't do anything to me, you are thousands of miles away.  
Lori: Wait_

She looked up, only to see an angry pink thing flying into her face and tackling her down to the ground along with the bench.

* * *

 **Pink Pageant Princess to the face!**

 **Well, Lori you didn't expected that, am I right?**  
 **What will Lori do? How will she deal with her strong feelings for Lana?**

 **I hope you all liked this chapter.**  
 **Please Review, I want to hear feedback, do you like the story? Constructive criticism would also be nice.**

 **Until chapter 2, I wish you a nice day!**


	2. Love the many, love the few

**The second and last chapter is here.**  
 **But before we begin it is time to answer some questions and react to comments:**

 **Minecraftkid: Thank you.**

 **JamesSunderlandsPillow: Thank you for saying this, I noticed that myself that none of the sisters and brother has a favorite amongst their ranks.**

 **AstralWhip: If you say so. My favorite is Leni.**

 **Talespinner69: I had the idea from the episode "Garage Banned". She let's Lana sleep with her when she as nightmares. If that is not a sign for affection I don't know what is.**

 **The Keeper of Worlds: Your curiosity shall be satisfied with this chapter.**

 **I want to thank ultrabud2 for proofreading this chapter and chapter 1.**

 **Without further ado I hope you enjoy the conclusion of this story.**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: Love the many, love the few**

* * *

If you live in a big family, quiet moments are seldom.  
But if somebody from a big family experiences real solitude, they may enjoy it a lot, but eventually they miss the many people and the loud sounds around them. Nevertheless, Lori wasn't thinking about that now. She was lying on her bed, her face studded with little bandages and bruises, thanks to Lola after her attack.

After a short fight with the enraged princess, she brought her and Lana back home, the trip having ended after this disaster. On the way home, they had argued about the incident, throwing the blame at each other, discussing and growling about it.

Before arriving home, Lori and Lola agreed that they wouldn't talk about this incident to their parents. Lana pointed out that they could look the entire incident up on their social media pages, but Lori patiently explained to the tomboy twin that not mentioning the physical battle was more important.

She and Lola hid their injuries with make-up and now she had some peace, quiet and time to think. She had to think about her sibling-relationships.

 _I am too nice to Lana. Why do I like her more than Lola? Why do I like her more than the others? The others don't deserve to be loved less than her, I have to_ _show my love equally_ _, no more or less love for anymore._

Most were gone now. The twins had a Bluebell Scout-Meeting later that day and the others, except Leni and Luna, were doing their own things elsewhere, while Luna was surprisingly quiet for some reason, listening to classical music as preparation for a special track instead of the usual non-stop rock music, and Leni was sewing something in the cellar.

She tried to command her mind and feelings to love nobody more than everybody else, but Lana always came on top tied with Leni. She couldn't do much against liking Leni at least a little more than the others, she was her roommate and the sibling that was the closest to her in terms of age and the one she was most familiar with.  
But Lana was a problem.

She didn't mind Lana, in fact, she was the sibling she was the least annoyed with by their antics, which was surprising because she was often the dirtiest of them, playing in the mud, eating garbage and being a tiny bit too close to animals and pets.

She was also the one who respected her the most, calling her Sir or Ma'am whenever she had to order the entire family around.

Lana was the one who was allowed to climb into Lori's bed whenever she had nightmares.  
She remembered the first time it happened well…

* * *

 _Lori was sleeping as she felt something tugging on her blanket._

 _"Psst, Lori! Are you awake?" a tiny voice whispered to her._

 _Lori grumbled something, already feeling sour about being woken up at this hour._

 _Grumbling, she turned around to look at the fool who had dared wake her up at this time of the night._  
 _"Lana?" she noticed still grumbling. "What do you want?"_

 _"I had a nightmare," Lana told her in a timid voice, still shaking a little bit from her bad dream. "An alien shot me with lasers canons. I thought I would die."_

 _"Aliens are not real. Go back to bed," ordered Lori in her sternest voice._

 _"But I am scared," admitted Lana nervously. "Can I bunk with you?"_

 _"Why do you want to bunk with me?" asked Lori in a tone that was more confused than angry. "You should know the others are more willing to help you with such a thing than I am."_

 _"But… But…."_

 _"But what? Spit it out now!"_

 _"Leni is too naïve, Luna is too wild, Luan would make puns at the monster and Lynn would attack it head on," Lana blurted out. "You are the only one who knows what to do if an alien attacks."_

 _"I… I…" Lori didn't know what to say, so she settled with a: "Thank you."_

 _"Can I come to you know?"_

 _Lori was torn between her wish for solitude in her own rectangle of sleep and the sisterly wish to comfort her little sister. She was thinking how weak she would come across doing this, but in the end, she didn't care what the others might think of her as a softie. She could shatter that image easily enough, at least if they thought she had become a pushover._

 _"Come here, but don't make any noises," ordered Lori and lifted her blanket._

 _Lana jumped on the bed, happiness invading her face as she snuggled into Lori's chest. The oldest sister wrapped her blanket around the tomboyish twin and embraced her with her arm, stroking her back._

 _"Good Night Lana," said Lori in a soft voice. "Sleep well, your big sister will protect you from all aliens."_

 _"Good Night Lori, I love you," came an answer back from the little bundle in her arm who closed her eyes._

 _Lori did the same, and before she fell back into the land of slumber, she said: "Love you too."_

* * *

Had that been the start?  
It seems likely, Lana confessed that she felt really safe with Lori and that was a big praise for her, receiving so much trust from the little tomboy. How could she not like her after such a declaration of belief and trust in her person?

There was the answer, or at least part of the answer. There was probably more but that event was significant.

Lori knew the source, but didn't know how to solve the situation or what else had caused it. How-

"Lori? Hi?" asked Leni for the fifth time now, standing beside Lori's bed. "Have you seen my dungaree? I wanted to make jeans, but forgot to take them with me."

Lori sat up, surprised by Leni. "Oh, Leni I didn't notice you there," she explained, a little dazed after being torn out of her thoughts that way. "I don't know, sorry sis."

Leni looked worriedly at her older sister. Some people called her dumb, but she knew when one of her family members was eaten up by something and Lori looked very eaten up right now.

"Like, what is going on Lori? You are so absent minded, you may end up wearing ankle boots with jeans."

"I was thinking…" started Lori to say before stopping herself and thought her words through. "I was thinking about the incident you guys witnessed on social media."

"Yes, the Royal Shakespeare Company doesn't want to become friends with Starbucks. Like, it is a shame."

"I was literally talking about the argument I had with Lola," Lori corrected the dimwit forbearing. "I was wondering why I reacted the way I did."

"Do you feel stressed? Were you ashamed about your posting mistakes? Do you have relationship issues with Bobby?"

"The former two points are correct; the last one is not, fortunately."

Leni, ever her helpful self, sat down on the bed beside her sister and patted her hair. "We all make mistakes. Like the time I used social media for the first time and tried ordering Facebook to connect me with my other friends."

"You posted messages on your activity log for over an hour until somebody explained to you how you are supposed to send friend requests."

Leni looked to the side ashamed, but looked up back to her happy seconds later. "You learn from your mistakes."

Lori gave her a nod and smiled. "And you did."

"So, what is your problem big sis?"

Lori sighed and laid back on her bed. "I wonder why I liked, posted and messaged the way I did. I favored Lana, which wasn't my intention. But I don't understand why I tried to deny it so aggressively."

Leni rubbed her chin, looking around the room as if the answer was lurking somewhere there. "Because you can't admit your mistake?"

"A little bit, but I think there was more to it than that."

"Like, something that happened in your past?"

"Yeah, that could literally-"  
Lori stopped, her eyes going wide.

"Wait, this IS literally what… Oh, my god!"  
She remembered. She remembered it all know!

"What is it Lori?"

Lori looked up to her sister and smiled at her, yet she looked nervous. "I know the source, but I can't talk about it now."

Leni looked even more worried than before and held her right hand to her chest. "Is it something bad? Did something bad happen to you?"

"Well… I… Literally…. No, I am fine, I…. Ergh… Please, I don't want to talk about it."

Leni's look of concern for her sister didn't change but she dropped the subject, saying: "I understand. When you feel ready, you can talk to me anytime."

Lori, looking to the side, nodded. "I see… Thank you Leni, I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

Luna was writing lyrics for a new song as somebody knocked on her door.

"Come in!"

Lori entered the room, looking somber yet determined. Luna saw that something serious was going on the second she beheld the face of the second-in-command.  
"Lori, you look miffed, mate, what is troubling you?"

"You were once my favorite, Luna," Lori said honest. "I preferred you over Leni."

Luna was so dumbfounded, she even forgot to use her British accent. "Please, what?"

Lori took a deep breath and threw her arms in the air, saying: "You had been my favorite after you were born. Leni was the most frustrating baby and toddler of all time."

"Calm your… chest, don't bust yourself up." Luna sat down on her bed and offered Lori to seat on the beanbag.

Lori let herself fall down on the comfy beanbag, soaking the comfortable feeling of the seat into her stressed body.

"Also, tell me why I was once your favorite sister," requested Luna interested. "But first, you should tell my why you want to talk about this now."

"Because I have another favorite now," Lori explained with a defeated sigh. "I can't have a favorite. I can't neglect any of you to favor another. Let me literally tell you why."

* * *

 _"Wama!"_

 _"Leni, stop! That isn't mama! Look out, the broken bottle!"_

 _Leni avoided the sharp pieces of the bottle via Lori kicking them away from herat the last second._

 _Little 2-year-old Lori was running after baby Leni Loud, who was crawling through a crowd towards the stage on which a rock concert was taking place and a blonde man was singing the No. 1 Bad Boy. Lori was wearing a brown T-Shirt with black overalls and sports shoes._

 _"Wama!" she cooed, thinking the lead-singer was her mother because he had blonde hair like her._

 _Lori had a difficult time catching up to the baby because she was faster than she looked and Lori had been hindered by concert goers. She had to reach to Leni somehow before something bad would happen to her little sister._

 _She somehow managed to get onto the stage and then the lead singer's leg before Lori could reach him._

 _He looked down in confusion as a little baby, saying "Wama" over and over climbed up on him while he tried to continue his song._

 _"Leni, you get down from there right now or WAAAAH!"_

 _Lori tripped over some prop on the stage and fell directly into the lead singer, both bumped against the amplifier which led to a domino effect that ended in the destruction of the concert.  
_

* * *

Luna was dumbfounded. "Leni climbed the leg of Bret Michaels from Poison and then you three destroyed an entire concert?"

Lori sighed, but thinking about the incident in a more casual manner. "Yes, but that wasn't even the worst of it."

* * *

 _Little 2-year-old Leni, who was wearing a pink dress, was staring at the thing in utter fascination but also fear. It had made an unholy sound, a sound she had never heard before, a sound so utterly alien and bizarre, it sounded like the howl of a tortured creature._

 _"Lori, something is captured in this thing, every time I hit one of the buttons, different creatures calls for help, and I think they are angry!"_

 _Lori, 3 years old and playing with baby Luna, looked at her younger sibling with an annoyed expression._

 _"For the last time, there is no animal inside the "The farmer says" toy, Leni. Nothing or nobody is imprisoned in it."_

 _"But what else makes those noises?"_

 _"It is…" Lori scratched her head. She didn't know either. "It is something… Somebody captured some voices and put them into this toy."_

 _Leni made an incredibly shocked gasp in response, in fact, she was about to cry. "They stole some helpless animals' voices and put them into this machine? How could they do something like this?!"_

 _"Leni, that is not what I-"_

 _But Leni didn't listen, running away and coming back with a crowbar…  
_

* * *

"Until Lana started being interested in the crafts, Mom kept the tools locked up since then."

"That didn't sound so bad, at least in comparison to the first thing," Luna commented.

"Believe it or not, it gets even worse," continued Lori.

* * *

 _Baby Leni had forgotten to breath. For the fifth time this month._

 _Which led to Lori becoming one of the youngest known users of CPR in history because her parents could never be sure when_

 _ever Leni forgot to breath and Lori had to resuscitate here if they weren't there._

 _The entire situation would have been more harrowing for Lori if Leni hadn't said "AGAIN!" because she had to pick up that ONE word from that ONE Dinosaur._

* * *

"Saying that word again and again ruined any dramatic feeling I could have had about my baby sister dying," grumbled Lori. "Despite Leni almost dying more than once, I could never take it seriously."

Luna, on the other hand looked, horrified. "Leni almost died several times?"

The woman in the cyan shirt shrugged. "Yes, and I was not traumatized by it because "AGAIN!" again and again."

"Did it get any worse?"

"Oh, yes. Here is the worst story:"

* * *

 _"You are LITERALLY THE WORST, Leni Loud!" screamed Lori at the little girl before her._

 _Baby Luna was crying and little Lori was trying to comfort here._

 _"Why the heck did you think that it was a good idea to put strawberry L'Oréal in Luna's porridge?"_

 _"It looked so tasty," defended Leni subdued. "If it can leave her clean and smelling good, it should also taste good."_

 _"YOU ARE AN IDIOT FOR BELIEVING THAT!" screamed Lori, stroking Luna's head. "Luna is a way better sister than you will ever be. Just see what you did to her."_

 _"But-"_

 _"Go away and stay away from me and Luna!" the oldest little girl screamed in anger. "I hate you!"_

 _Leni trembled, biting her lips, her mind trying to ignore what Lori just said but she couldn't. She opened her mouth and released a quailed wail of anguish as her eyes started to water, tears rolling out of them as she started to cry._

 _She ran away, crying for her parents who were upstairs cleaning while they had requested Lori to feed Luna. She had been very responsible and willing to help, so their parents thought she could watch over Luna for a short time, but they didn't count for Leni._

 _The following events were awkward and confusing for everyone involved. They blamed Lori for screaming at Leni, they berated Leni for putting L'Oréal in her sister's porridge and were frustrated about the situation in general._

 _In the end, Leni laid in and silently crying in Rita's lap, Lynn was holding Luna, who had calmed down, and Lori stood before both adults, appearing defiant._

 _"Lori, what you did was wrong," began her father to speak sternly._

 _"It was wrong for me to scold Leni for feeding Luna with hair shampoo?"_

 _Lynn opened his mouth, before he closed it, thought a second and finally said: "No, not that part. That was the correct thing to do." He turned to Leni. "Sorry, sweetie, that was wrong."_

 _Leni, eyes still red, puffy and wet, looked up and nodded, understanding what he meant._

 _"But your reaction was badly worded," continued her father. "You don't call your sister stupid or an idiot."_

 _"And you especially don't say you like your sister more than her," added Rita in a stern voice. "That is not right."_

 _"Why?" asked Lori stubbornly. "Leni doesn't deserve my affection. She doesn't deserve it because she is acting so stupid all the time!"_

 _"She is just a little kid, Lori," argued Rita with a frustrated expression. "Making mistakes is just natural for someone her age."_

 _"But she does them non-stop!" exploded Lori. "I have to rescue and help her again and again and again! I can't take it anymore, I won't take it anymore. From now on, I will only help Luna!"_

 _A palm hit raw flesh._

 _Lori looked over to her father who had been hitting a steak with his bare hand. "I hope I have your attention now."_

 _Lori nodded, though a little confused about her father's action._

 _"If you have more than one sister, brother or sibling, you don't favor one over the other. You just don't do that."_

 _"Why shouldn't I?" asked Lori once again. "Why should I spend time with somebody I don't like?"_

 _"Do you really hate Leni?" asked my father in his most neutral tone. "Do you really despise your little sister?"_

 _Lori, abashed by those words, looked to the ground and mumbled: "No."_

 _"You hear that, Leni?" Rita indicated to Leni. "She doesn't hate you. She was just very angry."_

 _Leni looked up from her mother's lap and over to Lori, looking hurt, her gaze was also inquisitive, thinking about what could happen next._

 _"Lori, you can't openly like others and/or treat others worse because you like somebody else more," explained her father in a stern tone. "Your feelings are different, but that doesn't mean people you feel different about don't deserve proper attention or care."_

 _"But I just like Luna more, why is that wrong?"_

 _"Because nobody in this family should feel unloved or unappreciated. The worst thing that could happen to somebody is feeling unloved. Everybody deserves love."_

 _"How bad can Leni feel without my love, mom?"_

 _"Very terrible, love is important. Everyone deserves love, especially your family members," explained her mother in a calm and understanding tone. "Give your love equally to all, don't leave anyone behind. Don't let anyone feel unloved."_

 _Lori needed a few minutes to fully understand what her mother meant by it. She didn't hate Leni, nor wanted her to get in harm's way or feel bad. But she was still incredibly difficult to keep an eye on._

 _"Can you help me with Leni in the future? I think it is too much for me to watch over her alone."_

 _Lynn nodded. "I guess we can take some of the pressure off of you again, Lori. Don't feel bad about it, we all overestimate ourselves from time to time. Maybe one day you will feel ready for more responsibilities again."_

 _Lori had the feeling that she should watch over her younger siblings as the oldest since the day Leni was born. But Leni had been very high maintenance from day one, and Luna was very easy to watch over in comparison._

 _Getting some time off was probably the thing she needed and a way to spend more quality time with Leni._

 _On this day, she swore to herself NEVER to love anyone in her family more or less than any other member._

 _Except for roommates, but that was kind of unavoidable and an issue Lori wouldn't have to deal with for the moment.  
_

* * *

"And this is the reason I can't have favorites."

Luna nodded in understanding. She wasn't shocked about the reveal and the reasons. She was surprised, but not in a negative way. "You think too much about the issue, sis."

Lori blinked in surprise. "What? But I… I just explained the issue to you in great detail!"

"I heard ya mate. I went through the same issue once and found a solution."

"You also had a favorite?" asked Lori, looking up to her. "If it is not me, you can say it, as I made you my favorite when you were a baby, so I don't demand anything from you there."

Luna chuckled. "Do not worry. But let me explain this to you: Aside from Luan, I like to spend a lot of time with Lucy."

"How come?"

"I am into metal rock, she is into dark poetry. Both of those passions cross often. The little dark dudette jams nicely with my rock and roll."

"But does nobody of the others feel neglected by you?"

"Nobody said anything, and I don't hang out with Lucy 24/7, so I guess not."

Lori was still pessimistic, but this information filled her with a little bit more hope. "What about the others? I… don't know how they usually interact with each other these days."  
This confession filled her with shame, realizing she may have missed some important information.

Luna either didn't notice, didn't care for or wanted to dismiss that, lest Lori feel even worse about this. Instead she explained: "Lola often hangs out with Leni, since as a professional pageant participant, she also loves fashion, style and makeup. Luan is spending time with Lana AND Lisa to talk about mechanics & craftsmanship and chemistry & physics respectively and Lynn loves to spend time with Lana because she isn't afraid of some rough playtime and both love some spicy food."  
And she added after a short pause: "And we all love Lincoln in our own way. He has the most balanced bond with all of us."

Lori couldn't disagree with that logic. Listening to Luna's explanation, she could see how the sisters shared more interests with each other than she would have thought.  
She herself shared most of her interests with Leni, meaning there was even more than just their roommate connection. She just never had thought of that before.

"You really think we can have closer bounds with singular siblings without risking the bond with the others in general, Luna?"

"I just told ya sis. We are doing it already," clarified Luna. "It is easy. Just grab your favorite and have a good time with her, will ya? Otherwise, your feelings will overwhelm you and let you to make stupid things like you did today."

The blonde golf player rubbed the back of her head nervously. "B- But what am I supposed to say to L… Eh… You know…"

"You mean Lana?"

Lori jumped up in surprise. "How do you know?"

"You let her into your bed when she has nightmares, and she sits on your lap more often in comparison to the others."

Lori sighed in bemused annoyance. "And I thought my odd behavior from those last few days revealed my true feelings."

Luna shook her head. "No, I just thought that you acted funny for some reason, the reason I do now know."

 _So much for keeping my true feelings a secret,_ Lori thought. "I guess I can do nothing to change my feelings. Or even hide them."

"Do you get an autograph from Bret Michaels after Leni climbed his leg?"

"No, I was more worried about bringing Leni to safety and avoiding trouble with the concert's promoters," Lori remembered with a wince. "Mom and Dad also never found out about this incident."

"And I promise you not to tell anyone about that," promised Luna, zipping her mouth, rolling up the glass of the car door and put herself into a safe to make sure-

"Stop it with the Pantomime act. Just don't sing about it while taking a shower."

"Whatever you say, chap."

* * *

The second-in-command entered the backyard of Franklin Avenue's loudest house, looking for the little rascal and animal lover. She quickly found her playing with Charles, the dog of the Loud House, by throwing the Frisbee while he tried to catch it in the air, more often failing than succeeding.

Lori took a deep breath.  
"Lana, can… can we talk?"

Lana reacted promptly. "Yeah, of course Lori, what is it?"

The older sister carefully put her hands under Lana's armpits and lifted her into the air. She embraced the little plumber with tender and lovely intent.

"Did one of my pets die?"

"Wha-" Lori, irritated, held Lana before her. "No, they are all okay."

"Why the hug then?"

Lori gave her sister a kiss on her forehead. "Because I love you and I want to spend some time with you."

Lana, who was not thinking much about Lori's sudden friendly demeanor, nodded happily in return. "Can we play hide and seek?"

"Of course!"

And the two started to play.

Lori felt free, so free, like she felt only a few times in her past while she counted to 20 with Lana hiding, searched for her, found her and then they started again vice versa.  
There was no shame or stigma for having a favorite sibling as long as you do not neglect the others. Her other siblings didn't need her right now or even all the time, so she could take time off to hang out with Lana.

She could take time for her favorite.

"Lana, did you have to hide in the trash can?"

"I like it here, and I was hungry."

Even if that had some downsides

* * *

 **So, it is over, finished.**

 **This was quite the challenge, well especially the ending, I think the ending is a little weak.**

 **I am not the kind of guy who likes to copy others, I strife for original ideas and even when I copy some stuff I want always to add a creative spin to it. Creativity is very important to me.**

 **Like always regular comments, constructive criticism, favs and follows are all appreciated.**  
 **I especially would like to know what you guys think of the Aesop at the end, I really hope it worked.**

 **Bis die Tage! (See you later everyone!)**

 **References:**

 **"AGAIN" is from Baby from the Jim Henson Sitcom "Dinosaurs" who had probably the darkest ending to any sitcom ever created.**


End file.
